Are you ready? Then stop questioning your heart and join me, because it’s time for Monday Night RAW!!!

Rowdy Roddy Piper is introduced and he makes his way down to the ring. Piper puts over his success and claims that the fans’ cheers are the source of his energy. Piper said that when the fans were booing him, it made him feel bad. So he did some really rotten things. But the fact of the matter is that it is the fans that make him go to work. But there is someone who thinks that the energy from the fans doesn’t matter – John Cena!

Cena’s music hits and he runs down to the ring. Cena disputes that he doesn’t care about the fans. Piper wants to play word association with the fans. Stone Cold Steve Austin – cheers. Bret Hart – cheers. The Rock – cheers. John Cena – boos. A loud Cena chant does erupt to mix in with the jeers. Cena says that sounded pretty good, but he knows what Piper is trying to do. Piper says that when the fans were calling to The Rock to Rock Bottom Cena, and he did, they came unglued.

Cena says that this isn’t the first time this has happened, he’s been dealing with it firsthand. Cena says that there is a group of people who knew who he is and what he represents, so he is loyal to them. But, he acknowledges that there are those who buy a ticket to tell him he sucks. Cena says that the beauty of the WWE Universe is that the fans can do what they want. Piper says that Cena doesn’t care.

Piper says that Cena is the face of the WWE. He is the man, and the crowd is booing louder and louder. Piper says that if Cena doesn’t start saying to the fans what he really thinks, he’ll be the loser in the biggest WrestleMania match in history. Cena points out numerous times in his career where he has been hated by the audience. Cena says The Rock had one great night. Cena points out two young kids wearing his gear and that’s why he does what he does. Cena puts over the soldiers in attendance, and all of his fans. His shirt says, “Rise Above Hate”. Cena says that is what he must do, that’s the example he must set. Cena says that he knows he’ll beat The Rock at WrestleMania.

Piper says that he came all this way to do Pipers Pit because he is proud of John Cena. Piper says that his generation is proud of the job that Cena is doing. Everyday Cena is setting a great example as role model. Piper says that there is so much energy to tap into that Cena has not yet realized. Piper calls Cena a future Hall of Famer and hands him his Hall of Fame ring. Cena says thanks, but he is in a good place. Piper slaps him and tells him to feel the energy! Cena resists retaliation and hands Piper his ring back before exiting the ring.

Video Recap: The Awesome Truth breaks up

In the back, John Morrison is talking to Alex Riley

****Commercial****

John Morrison begins his entrance for his Falls Count Anywhere match against The Miz. Morrison is attacked by a steel pipe wielding Miz from behind and the trainers come out to assist him. They walk him up the ramp, but Morrison decides he still wants to fight and hobbles his way to the ring.

The Miz v. John Morrison

The Miz goes right after Morrison’s injured leg at the start. Morrison gets in a couple of punches but Miz targets the leg again. He slams it repeatedly against the steel post. Miz grabs a kendo stick from under the ring. Miz hits Morrison across the leg, but John dodges the second swing. Both men fall the mat, and Morrison grabs the stick. John connects across the back and midsection of Miz repeatedly. Miz slides out of the ring, but Morrison follows right after. John tries for a cover, but Miz kicks out. John crawls back to the weapon and turns around to find Miz. Miz makes it up the entrance ramp, buying time from his limping foe. Miz throws Morrison into the metal WWE symbol, and then hits the Skull Crushing Finale on the ramp!

The referee doesn’t let Miz cover him, and instead calls for the bell as Morrison can no longer compete.

Winner via TKO: The Miz

The Miz gets a mic and says that last week it was R-Truth. This week was John Morrison. Next week? We’ll have to wait and see. The Miz says that he is the only person capable of making this kind of an impact, because he is awesome.

****Commercial****

The Bella Twins v. Kelly Kelly & Alicia Fox

Kelly starts off the match against one of The Bellas. Natalya and Beth Phoenix jog down and around the ring, and then head back up the ramp. Kelly is hitting an airplane hurricarana, so Fox tags herself in to the match. Kelly and one of the Bellas tumble out of the ring. Fox is alone with the other Bella and hits a nice Kevin Steen style FGF. This match is over.

Winner via FGF: Kelly Kelly & Alicia Fox

****Commercial****

John Laurinaitis is talking to Brodus Clay on the phone. David Otunga walks into the shot and asks when Brodus will finally compete. John says that the longer he waits to let Brodus return, the better and more aggressive he will be. Alberto comes into the office. He says that he will win tonight. John retorts that Del Rio told him that about Survivor Series. Rio claims that is a temporary setback because he’ll walk out tonight as Champion. CM Punk knocks and walks into the office. He claims that Google-ing Laurinaitis and Spineless returns over 100,000 results; searching for Del Rio and Boring returns over 900,000 results. Punk congratulates Del Rio for being nine times more boring that Laurinaitis is spineless. Punk tried searching for David Otunga, but that just returned a lot of results about Jennifer Hudson. Punk says that the WWE Title is going nowhere and walks away. Otunga says that he has a degree from Harvard and he is worried that Punk will get intentionally disqualified to keep the Title. John adjusts the stipulation so that if Punk DOES do that, he will forfeit the Title.

****Commercial****

Wade Barrett heads down to commentary for the next match.

Dolph Ziggler w/ Vickie Guerrero v. Randy Orton

They lock up and Ziggler tries for a leg attack. Orton clutches for a side headlock. Ziggler throws Orton into the ropes but gets hit with a shoulder block. Ziggler leapfrogs and tries for a hip toss. Orton counters, but so does Ziggler who tries for a roll up. Orton kicks out.

They square off once again. Ziggler knees Orton in the gut. Orton bounces back with a clothesline that sends Ziggler out of the ring for a reprieve. Ziggler returns to the ring and circles with Orton once again. Orton connects with a standing hip toss, and then stomps across the legs of Ziggler. Orton even takes a moment to yell at Vickie. Orton hits a knee drop and goes for the cover. Dolph kicks out. Orton hits a vertical suplex followed by a high knee drop. Ziggler rolls out of the way and stomps and punches at Orton. Ziggler hits a jumping elbow and tries for a cover. Orton kicks out.

Orton is the first to his feet, reverses a neckbreaker, and rolls up Orton. He kicks out of the cover. Ziggler kicks Orton sending him out of the ring. Orton rolls back and goes on the attack. Ziggler is able to survive the brief onslaught and counter into a cover. Orton kicks out. Ziggler climbs up the turnbuckle, but Orton follows after. Ziggler and Orton both have their feet on the top rope as Orton connects with a huge superplex! Ziggler kicks out of the cover!

****Commercial****

Back from the break, both men are on their feet, exchanging punches. Orton hits a couple big clotheslines followed by his signature scoop slam. Orton is starting to get amped up. Orton tries to set him up for the suspended DDT, and connects! Orton drops to the mat and begins pounding. Ziggler gets to his feet, and slides out of the ring to avoid the RKO. Wade leaves him commentary seat to distract Orton. Ziggler takes advantage and gets the cover.

Winner via Wade Barrett: Dolph Ziggler

After the match Vickie announces Dolph as the winner. He proceeds to do a handstand and then shouts, “How damn good am I?”.

****Commercial****

Michael Cole is in the ring with Daniel Bryan, who he calls the biggest hypocrite in the WWE. Bryan calls Cole the worst announcer in the history of the WWE. Bryan says that Cole should at least respect him. Cole retorts by pointing out that Bryan claimed he would wait to cash in Money in the Bank at WrestleMania. Instead, he tried to cash it in last Friday on a defenseless Mark Henry. We see a video recap of the victory.

Cole says that the funny thing is the fact that Teddy Long gave Mark Henry back the World Heavyweight Title, and gave Bryan back his Money in the Bank Briefcase. Cole says that he hopes Henry decimates Bryan tomorrow night in their steel cage Title match on the live edition of Smackdown.

Bryan says that he is a hypocrite. He wanted to wait until WrestleMania, but plans change. Henry tried to take out Bryan, so Bryan saw his chance and took it. Bryan says the only thing more important than fighting at ‘Mania, is winning the Title.

Mark Henry walks out onto the ramp with a mic. He says that Teddy Long is wrong to make him wrestle tomorrow night while he is still half way injured. Henry says that it is okay because he is one of the finest Superstars in history. He’ll defeat Bryan in a steel cage next week, Bryan simply can’t beat him. Bryan walks up the ramp and hits Henry’s leg with the briefcase and walks away.

****Commercial****

Jack Swagger w/ Vickie Guerrero v. Zack Ryder

Swagger starts with a takedown, and does a celebratory jog in the ring. Ryder gets to his feet, and hits a high running forearm. Swagger hits a Belly-to-back suplex and goes for the cover. Ryder kicks out. Swagger connects with a scoop slam and running leg drop. Cover, but Ryder kicks out. Swagger drops to one knee and cinches on an arm lock. He releases and punches Ryder repeatedly before returning to the hold. Zack escapes and hits a neckbreaker. Cover, but Swagger kicks out. Swagger tries for his Gut Wrench Powerbomb, but Ryder scurries off and heads up the turnbuckle. Swagger catches him for a slam. Ryder tries to block a Swagger Bomb, so Swagger attempts a second. Ryder blocks with his feet and hits the Rough Ryder. This match is over!

Winner via Rough Ryder: Zack Ryder

Video Promo: Kane is Resurrected

****Commercial****

The host of tomorrow night’s Holiday Special Edition of Smackdown, Mick Foley, comes out on the entrance ramp in a Santa suit. Saint “Mick” is here to tell us a tale. He breaks into a rhyming story hyping tomorrow’s live show.

Josh Mathews approaches CM Punk in the back and asks him about the intentional disqualification stipulation which states that Punk will forfeit his Title if he intentionally gets disqualified. Punk tells Josh that John Laurinaitis can, “kiss my ass”.

****Commercial****

WWE Championship MatchCM Punk [c] v. Alberto Del Rio

They square off and Del Rio goes after the right arm of Punk with an arm bar. Punk gets to his feet and backs Rio into the corner. Punk charges and connects with a monkey flip. Punk goes to the left arm of Rio and starts to begin work, but Del Rio counters into a side headlock. He releases and hits a shoulder block. Del Rio goes right back to the right arm of Punk and works it off the mat. Punk gets to his feet and throws Del Rio toward the ropes. Del Rio kicks Punk in the gut, but Punk leapfrogs and attacks Del Rio. Punk clotheslines Rio out of the ring, and flies out after with a suicide dive!

****Commercial****

Back from the break, Alberto Del Rio is in control. Cover attempt, but Punk kicks out. Del Rio goes back to an arm bar, and grabs the hair of Punk. Punk fights free with a couple of punches, and tries for a roll up. Rio stays on his feet and kicks Punk away. Del Rio climbs up to the top rope, and leaps for a forearm. It connects, but Punk kicks out of the cover. Del Rio continues to work the arm of Punk, and uses the rope for leverage. Punk escapes and leaps for a huge springboard, but Del Rio sidesteps and Punk is flattened against the mat. Del Rio goes back to the arm bar once again. Punk gets to his feet and punches his way free once again, but Rio connects with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Punk kicks out of the cover. Del Rio stomps on the arm of Punk and then heads up the turnbuckle. He leaps, and hits the splash once again. Punk kicks out of the cover. Del Rio locks on an arm bar. Another cover, another Punk kick out. Rio goes up top for another splash, but Punk counters and goes for a cover! Del Rio kicks out.

Both men get to their feet and exchange kicks. Del Rio punches him in the head before getting whipped into the ropes. Punk hits a spinning wheel kick and neckbreaker. Cover, but Rio kicks out. Punk charges at Del Rio in the corner and hits a high knee. Punk was pulling him into the middle of the ring, but Del Rio counters with an armbreaker. Punk barely kicks out of the cover. Punk misses a kick and gets caught with a bridging suplex pin. Punk kicks out.

Punk looks for a GTS, but Rio counters into a DDT! Cover, but Punk kicks out. Rio kicks him hard in the side out of frustration. Del Rio tries to take off the turnbuckle cover, causing the referee to fix it. Ricardo slides in a steel chair which Del Rio throws to Punk to try and get him DQ’ed. Punk throws it back and falls to the mat as if he’d been hit. The referee sees Punk on the mat and looks to call for the bell. Punk rolls up a furious Del Rio, but he kicks out! Del Rio hits his double knee backbreaker and goes for the cover! Somehow Punk kicks out. Ricardo is on the apron, so Punk drops Del Rio head first against the exposed turnbuckle! Cover, and this match is over!

Winner & STILL WWE Champion: CM Punk

David’s Thoughts

Interesting opening of the show with the Cena/Piper segment. The WWE has been pulling from their plethora of legends to put over Cena going into this WrestleMania match. While it felt like an anti-bullying PSA at times, it was an interesting segment. This is the first true tease of a heel Cena we have seen in the buildup. By that I don’t mean the blatant smarky references, but instead a potential angle is being teased. Will it happen? Who knows, they could just be screwing with us for kicks. I would like to throw out something to go “hmm” about for a second. Given the diminishing reactions for The Rock when he is name-dropped, could the WWE fans actually boo The Rock and cheer Cena by the end of their match? It’s not as far-fetched as you might think.

I like the aggressive side of The Miz. I don’t know what’s going to happen with him, but I could definitely see a #1 Contender match in his near future. (More about Morrison later)

Ziggler is performing at a higher level now than he ever has. His “how damn good am I” line is perfect, and his handstand is so douchey-heel that it works.

Women wrestled.

I find the Daniel Bryan situation to be disappointing. I get it, but the fan in me wanted to see Bryan headline a WrestleMania. If there was ever a year to take that risk, it’s this year. Let’s face it; no one is buying WM 28 because of the Smackdown Title Match. They’re buying it to see The Rock v. John Cena. They’re buying it to see if The Undertaker can make his record a cool 20-0. They’re not buying it for any of the Title matches. So take the risk of putting Bryan in a World Title Match at a WrestleMania, because regardless of the competitors, it’s not going to hurt or help the buyrate overall.

Zack Ryder defeated Jack Swagger. Yeah, that really happened. At least no one can complain the WWE isn’t giving him a push. I’m looking at you, Ryder fans who email me every week to complain I don’t talk about him enough

Punk/Alberto was a strong match to close the show. For a split second I actually believed Rio might steal it at the end. Punk pretending Del Rio hit him with the chair was well done, that spot has always amused me. It’s the simple things in life, it really is.

John Morrison

Well, good-bye to John Morrison. In my youth, when John had first started appearing on WWE TV as Bischoff’s assistant, I had the chance to attend a WWE House show. Johnny Nitro, as he was then known, was the acting General Manager. Most of the crowd that recognized him, really only knew him as Bischoff’s assistant, or that guy from Tough Enough. But, for one reason or another, I was a fan. To the bewilderment of everyone in my section, I was on my feet cheering every time Johnny appeared. As the ECW Recapper here on WrestleView, I had the chance to follow his ECW run in much more detail than I would normally expend. Thanks to the infamous Benoit situation, John was sent in to win the ECW Title. I saw much of his Tag Team work in MNM as they had some solid feuds with Paul London & Bryan Kendrick. Let’s not forget about his tag run with The Miz, and their amusing web show. When the team finally broke up, The Miz was almost universally thought of as the “Marty Jannety” of the tag team. In reality, almost the opposite came true. Love him, hate him – he is a remarkable athlete. Of course, professional wrestling isn’t just about being athletic. For all of his parkour and bedazzled abs, he lacked “it”. He lacked charisma. Sure there were moments when fans thought he might just break through. But instead, we were left time after time to fantasize about our hair blowing in slow motion when we entered a room. To blatantly copy and paste from Wikipedia, (but I’m totally crediting them so it’s okay and has nothing to do with my laziness towards typing it out myself) these are his accomplishments:

Pro Wrestling Illustrated PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (2009) PWI Tag Team of the Year (2005) with Joey Mercury PWI ranked him #27 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the year in the PWI 500 in 2010 and 2011

World Wrestling Entertainment ECW World Champion ([[1 time]) World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with The Miz WWE Intercontinental Championship (3 times) WWE Tag Team Championship (4 times) – with Joey Mercury (3) and The Miz (1) Slammy Award for Tag Team of the Year (2008) – with The Miz Slammy Award for Best WWE.com Exclusive (2008) – with The Miz WWE Tough Enough III with Matt Cappotelli

That’s not a bad career if you ask me. Sure he never won the big one, and he may not make it into the Hall of Fame, but only a small number of stars ever do in their careers.

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